Disney Trip 2009

It's good to be home after spending two fantastic weeks in SUNNY Florida. I capitalize the word "sunny" because it literally didn't rain a drop the entire time we were on vacation - awesome for us, not so good for Florida's drought. Back home the weather wasn't so nice. It was (and continues to be) cloudy, rainy and down right gloomy here.

We had so much fun and got to do so much. Our vacation began with a character breakfast at Chef Mickey's. The boys loved the Mickey ears waffles and meeting all the characters. I wasn't sure how JJ would react to seeing them in person. It took about 5 seconds for him to warm up to them.

After breakfast we hopped on the monorail for a spin around Disney World. JJ thought it was loud and covered his ears the entire time! AJ was so excited - he had really been looking forward to riding it.

A few more character pictures. Each of the Disney parks has places to meet them and get autographs. These are the best pictures.

Chip and Dale were so fun. They were fresh off their break and ready to play. One of them pointed to the fanny pack AJ was wearing, asking what was inside. He pulled out his Buzz Lightyear play phone and let them make a call. Pretty cute.

JJ wasn't too interested in meeting Chip and Dale. They came over anyway to say hello and give a handshake. Riding Dumbo the Flying Elephant was on the top of our list for our first day at the Magic Kingdom.
Driving the cars at the Tomorrowland Speedway was JJ's favorite ride. He loved that he could "drive" by himself. A pretty jerky ride, but so much fun to experience it with my little guy.

The Buzz Lightyear Ranger Spin ride was AJ's favorite. Of course this Buzz fan wouldn't miss it! He did pretty well shooting the targets and ended up with a score around 1200. Not bad!

This picture was taken soon after Jimmie and I got soaked on Splash Mountain! We sat in the very front row. Warning - the front row gets the biggest splash. You can't really tell how wet I got except for the flat hair.

Quite a few of the rides are dark and a little bit scary. This is how JJ took those in.
Each day I would ask the boys what their favorite thing was. Funny enough that JJ said he liked the parking lot trams the best. Second only to the Speedway, the trams were his favorite thing at Disney World! Don't you love the perspective of a child??


Meeting "the real" Buzz and Woody was a big hit with both boys. AJ actually waited in line both days we were at Hollywood Studios just to see them again.

My Buzz fans also still love Lightning McQueen and Mater from the movie Cars.

I had read that Disney has these pressed penny machines all over the parks (you have to pay 50 cents for each penny). I knew that AJ would beg to do this. So I had brought a roll of quarters and pennies for him to use. It was a hit!

Our first week in Orlando we were joined by my sister & her family as well as my dad (Papa T) and Mary (Nana). Getting to enjoy Disney with them was a special treat and something we will always remember. This is the only picture we have of our group after dinner, minus Jimmie the photographer and JJ the wanderer, at Cici's Pizza (my niece's favorite).

We went to Clearwater Beach (on the gulf side) and spent a few hours at the beach. It was a blast! AJ loved playing in the sand. JJ had so much fun running into the water, waiting for a wave, then running back onto the beach giggling all the way!

Dad & Mary came along for the ride this day. They enjoyed watching the boys play in the ocean as much as we did.

Taking a break from the sun to have a snack, my dad thought it would be fun to feed some cheetos to the seagulls. Soon we had a group of about fifteen seagulls swarming our cabana! It was great fun for about 10 seconds - then they wouldn't leave us alone! Great idea, DAD!

One last photo of us before leaving the beach. We asked around and were directed to the best Mexican restaurant in town. A hole in the wall for sure, but boy it was goooood! We played putt putt at our resort which actually hosts professional putt putt competitions. We played the championship course rather well. Here is AJ after making a hole in one.

This was our home for two weeks. A beautiful two bedroom condo at Orange Lake Resort & Country Club. We had a fantastic view from our patio of one of the golf greens.

This visitor would show up every so often to check us out. It is a sandhill crane - a very pretty bird. We didn't get too close!

My sister and her family were in the condo next door to ours. The cousins enjoyed the pool and playing in this sandlot.

I enjoyed watching them from the hammock and this view when I looked up.

It was awesome to be able to spend two weeks in paradise visiting Disney, Sea World, the beach, spending time with family, and relaxing. I took a hot jacuzzi bath almost every single night. But there is no place like home. We missed sleeping on our own pillows the most. I missed having Sonic right around the corner. AJ missed his friends. We loved Florida, but we're glad to be back home.

Disney Countdown

Only a few days left before our trip to Florida and we are so excited! AJ and I did a fun project in anticipation of our vacation.

He gets to take one link off the chain each day and see it get shorter and shorter until the day we leave for the airport. It's been a good visual reminder to me to get organized too.

Ever since our last trip to Disney World, I have been dreaming of the day we go back. This time with two children. I think my favorite Disney memory was AJ hugging Mickey Mouse. He was almost 3 years old here (and JJ 28 weeks in utero).

Do you have any favorite Disney memories you want to share? Leave me a comment and let me know. I can't wait to make more memories with my boys!

AJ turns 6!

This was AJ six years ago. Born on April 9th at 2:53am,

he weighed 6lbs. 12oz. and was 18 1/4 inches.

I can't believe it's been six years since AJ was born! How he has changed our lives. We celebrated AJ's big day with a backyard party for 10 friends the weekend before the actual day. They had a ball! AJ is still very much a Buzz Lightyear fan, so we had the space rocket Jupiter Jump and star themed cupcakes.

It must taste goooood!
AJ and some of the friends.

Of course, opening presents is always the highlight of a party!

On the morning of April 9th, AJ had a special homemade breakfast on a special birthday plate.

It was then off to school where mom & dad showed up at snacktime with star shaped rice crispy treats. Ms. Annie lit six candles. You can tell that AJ was either very concerned about the fire or was sizing up his task. When asked to make a wish, he said "I wish for all my friends to be my best friends forever!" What a sweetie!

The class then sang the Happy Birthday Cha Cha Cha song to him while he danced.

AJ is such a loving and loveable child. He tells us "I love you" at least 100 times a day (in English, Spanish, & Sign Language) and gives the best hugs.

We love you little buddy! Happy 6th Birthday!

HE IS RISEN!

Happy Easter! I wanted to share a few pictures with you from our Easter Egg hunt this weekend. We were invited to a family cookout in the country. We had beautiful weather and a great time hunting through the fields for eggs.

The boys are comparing their finds.

The magic of discovery - candy!!

Easter Sunday has been a cold & rainy day. However, it doesn't dampen the fact that we serve a RISEN LORD! Happy Easter!

An April Fools' Day Tribute

April 1st has always been a special day for my family. It is my Granddad Harold's birthday. He is no longer with us, but the memories of the times we shared are still very fresh in my mind. It's fitting that April Fools' Day was his birthday as he enjoyed 'kidding around'. I can still hear my grandmother's voice saying "Oh, Harold". They were such a special couple, married almost 65 years.

Granddad was a very social person knowing just about every person's name in their small town. He loved sports - he and my grandmother went to several Olympics. They also had season tickets to OSU football, basketball & wrestling. I remember my sister & I spreading out the OSU Orange blanket in their living room as our "wrestling mat" and taking turns pinning him in record time! This photo of them was taken almost 20 years ago at some kind of OSU event.

My Granddad Harold developed Alzheimer's and "missed" the last 12 or so years of his life. During most of those years he would still greet people with a smile and a handshake and joke around a little. It seemed like the same old Harold to most people. He really 'fooled' them that he didn't remember their names anymore. Granddad was kind, caring, a gentle spirit, and loyal. He was a man of integrity, honest, trustworthy and a good friend. He had such enthusiasm for life - he lived a great life.

Happy Birthday, Granddad Harold! We love you! And that's no April Fools!